In Wednesday’s (8/24) Chronicle of Philanthropy, Raymund Flandez writes, “The economic turbulence could make the next few months a really tough time for charities making appeals. A new survey reports that two out of three Americans (68 percent) say they will cut back on giving to charity in the coming months because of economic uncertainty or personal financial blows. The study of 487 adults who donated at least $20 in the past year was conducted in mid-August by the market-research firm Campbell Rinker for Dunham+Company, a Dallas firm that advises nonprofits on fund raising and management. … That could be the sign of a long-term problem for nonprofits—many of which have barely recovered from the sharpest drops in giving in at least five decades, according to [the non-profit consulting group] ‘Giving USA.’ Donors said the two biggest reasons they would stop giving were personal—either their household had faced a job loss or they had encountered rising living or other personal expenses. Others said they felt general unease about the economy. Only 17 percent of donors believe the economy will improve soon versus the 43 percent who said it will continue to slide.”
Posted August 25, 2011
